1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to fuel mixtures for internal combustion engines, and more particularly pertains to the direct combining of hot exhaust gases and fuel in an engine to effect a complete vaporization of the fuel before combustion.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The use of various devices to effect a complete vaporization of fuel in an internal combustion engine before combustion is well known in the prior art. Further, a number of such devices rely upon the heat generated by the hot exhaust gases to effect such fuel vaporization. For example, reference is made to U.S. Pat. No. 1,547,474, which issued to G. Welch on July 28, 1925. In this device, fuel passes through a chamber lying proximate the exhaust manifold of a vehicle and is vaporized by the exhaust manifold heat. However, no direct intermixing of the exhaust gases and fuel is undertaken.
Similarly, U.S. Pat. No. 1,548,149, which issued to J. Losee on Aug. 4, 1925, discloses a further heater for vehicle intake manifolds wherein hot exhaust gases are passed along an exterior surface of the intake manifold, thereby to provide increased heat for effecting the desired fuel vaporization. As with the above-described device, no direct intermixing of the exhaust gases with the fuel vapors is accomplished.
A more recent fuel vaporization device which makes use of engine heat to effect such evaporation of fuel is to be found in U.S. Pat. No. 3,789,817, which issued to Morel et al on Feb. 5, 1974. The Morel et al device is representative of even further devices now known in the prior art which are designed to provide more efficient fuel vaporization and combustion so as to combat pollution. The device shown in this patent is of a substantially complex construction and utilizes electric resistance heating, as well as exhaust gas heat to accomplish a complete evaporation of the fuel prior to combustion. A complete fuel vaporization results in a more efficient and clean burning thereof in the engine combustion chambers, which in turn results in less pollutants being exhausted into the atmosphere. While no direct intermixing of exhaust gases and fuel is disclosed in this patent, it is representative of the need for also providing means for removing pollutants from exhaust gases. Ideally, exhaust gases from a perfect combustion process would have all hydrocarbons burned to thus eliminate virtually all solid atmospheric pollutants. Inasmuch as an ideal combustion process has not yet been perfected, there exists a continuing need for some means of providing a more complete and efficient combustion process to reduce pollutants and improve engine efficiency, and in this respect, the present invention substantially fulfills this need.